Thursday, 1 August 2019

In a world first, researchers at ZSL and UCL compared changes in bird and mammal populations with socio-economic trends in low- and lower-middle income countries over the past 20 years. Their results suggest that national-level economic growth and more gender-balanced governments enhance wildlife populations and provide support for linking the UN's human development and conservation targets.

At dusk, tourists marvel at the sensational collapse of an iceberg at the end of its long journey from Greenland to Canada's east coast, which now has a front row seat to the melting of the Arctic's ice.

An initial infection with dengue virus did not prime monkeys for an especially virulent infection of Zika virus, according to a study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Nor did a bout with Zika make a follow-on dengue infection more dangerous.

Fuels made from agricultural or forestry wastes known as lignocellulosic biomass have long been a champion in the quest to reduce use of fossil fuels. But plant cell walls have some innate defenses that make the process to break them down more difficult and costly than it could be.

The Biodiversity Indicators Partnership officially adopted in July a new indicator to track progress on the conservation of thousands of economically and culturally important plants. Developed by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture and the Crop Trust, the indicator helps rate progress toward the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), Aichi Biodiversity Target 13, which includes maintaining the genetic diversity of cultivated plants, their wild relatives, and other socioeconomically and culturally valuable flora. The metric is also listed as a relevant indicator for Sustainable Development Goal 2.5. But based on the very low average score for the plants in the index—about 3 out of 100—the indicator shows that much work remains to be done to achieve the conservation target.

Eleven new to science species of rain frogs are described by two scientists from the Museum of Zoology of the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador in the open-access journal ZooKeys. Discovered in the Ecuadorian Andes, the species are characterized in detail on the basis of genetic, morphological, bioacoustic, and ecological features.

The term "fake news" has been popularized by President Donald Trump in recent years, and while its meaning has been hotly debated, the spreading of false information to fulfill a political agenda is far from a new concept around the world. Exploring the perception of the "fake news" phenomenon is critical to combating the ongoing global erosion of trust in the media according to a study co-authored by a University of Houston researcher.

Military veterans with a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI) are more than twice as likely to die by suicide compared with veterans without such a diagnosis, according to a newly published study by researchers led by faculty from the CU School of Medicine.

Scientists using an experimental treatment have slowed the progression of scrapie, a degenerative central nervous disease caused by prions, in laboratory mice and greatly extended the rodents' lives, according to a new report in JCI Insight. The scientists used antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), synthetic compounds that inhibit the formation of specific proteins.

Mount Sinai researchers have developed a way to use immunotherapy drugs against treatment-resistant non-Hodgkin's lymphomas for the first time by combining them with stem cell transplantation, an approach that also dramatically increased the success of the drugs in melanoma and lung cancer, according to a study published in Cancer Discovery in August.

An artificial intelligence (AI) model has been found to identify patients with intermittent atrial fibrillation even when performed during normal rhythm using a quick and non-invasive 10 second test, compared to current tests which can take weeks to years. Although early and requiring further research before implementation, the findings could aid doctors investigating unexplained strokes or heart failure, enabling appropriate treatment.

Medical marijuana is expected to start reaching select dispensaries in Louisiana on Tuesday, after the state agriculture department completed final testing and cleared therapeutic cannabis for release to patients.

U.S. drug overdose deaths, which have been concentrated in Appalachia and other rural areas for more than a dozen years, are back to being most common in big cities again, according to a government report issued Friday.

Research led by King's College London has found that the currently recommended treatment for a common pregnancy liver disorder that can result in preterm birth and stillbirth, is ineffective and should be reconsidered.

A research team led by Whitehead Institute scientists has identified 30 distinct chemical compounds—20 of which are drugs undergoing clinical trial or have already been approved by the FDA—that boost the protein production activity of a critical gene in the brain and improve symptoms of Rett syndrome, a rare neurodevelopmental condition that often provokes autism-like behaviors in patients. The new study, conducted in human cells and mice, helps illuminate the biology of an important gene, called KCC2, which is implicated in a variety of brain diseases, including autism, epilepsy, schizophrenia, and depression. The researchers' findings, published in the July 31 online issue of Science Translational Medicine, could help spur the development of new treatments for a host of devastating brain disorders.

Norfolk Island is an isolated island in the South Pacific located between New Zealand and Australia. The island is quite small, with a total area of only about 14 square miles. Norfolk Island is known for two things. First, it is the native habitat for a tree known as the Norfolk Island pine, which is widely planted throughout subtropical and tropical areas of the world. Second, the descendants of the Tahitians and the mutineers from the HMS Bounty (from the famous incident referred to as "mutiny on the Bounty") were resettled on Norfolk Island from Pitcairn Island in 1856.

Witnessing one total solar eclipse—the one that swept across the continental U.S. in 2017—wasn't enough for Montana State University senior Jaxen Godfrey. But when she flew to Chile in July to experience another, it wasn't just for the thrill. It was to continue studying an elusive atmospheric phenomenon.

Associate Professor Sonja Van Wichelen, sociologist and leader of the Biohumanity FutureFix research project in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences made the call in a paper published in the latest issue of Law and Society Review.

A collaboration between a Virginia Tech entomology professor, art professor, and computer science professor working in biophysics has resulted in the creation of stunning works of art that can help researchers and the public better understand the function of DNA and chromosomes in many important cellular processes.

Dartmouth has released its latest data on the number of alcohol-related incidents involving undergraduates on campus. The new information, which tracks incidents through the 2018-2019 academic year, is available on the Student Wellness Center website.

There have been fewer health advisories than usual about blue-green algae in Alberta lakes this past summer but that doesn't mean the problem is going away, explained a University of Alberta biologist.

Employees working in 'virtual teams' can overcome performance difficulties to work effectively if they have positive feedback, social support and job autonomy in their tasks and jobs, new research involving Curtin University has found.

Years of computer simulations. Countless ground tests. They've all led up to now. The Planetary Society's crowdfunded LightSail 2 spacecraft is successfully raising its orbit solely on the power of sunlight.